Italian Pasta Salad II

Peppers, cherry tomatoes and fresh basil and parsley make this salad a summer time favorite. This is truly a must have pasta salad especially if you are Italian. I can't keep this in the house, it goes as fast as I make it. Enjoy!

• Preparation Time: 25 mins
• Cooking Time: 10 mins
• Total Time: 35 mins
• Calories: 438 Calories

Ingredients

• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 (16 ounce) package rigatoni pasta
• 1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 2 pints cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano, or to taste
• 1 teaspoon fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 bunch fresh basil, chopped
• 2 red bell peppers, seeded and chopped
• 3 tablespoons jarred minced garlic
• 1 cup diced Asiago cheese
• 0.5 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 0.5 cup extra-virgin olive oil, or as needed

Recipe Instructions

Step 1

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta, and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, until tender. Drain, and transfer to a large bowl. Stir in enough olive oil to coat, but not so that it pools at the bottom of the bowl. Mix in the red and green bell peppers, tomatoes, garlic, salt, pepper, basil, parsley, oregano and Asiago cheese. Mix in the Parmesan cheese. Refrigerate until 20 minutes before serving. If the pasta soaks up a lot of the oil, you may need to add more. Taste the salad as you are preparing it, you may like more or less ingredients.